Speaker 1: Hello everyone, and welcome to another Blind Corp instructional series.
This time we're diving into the incredible advancement of the
Hawk Initiative. I am Leone Newton Johnson, and today I
have the privilege of walking you through the truly remarkable
journey we've embarked together. Now, before we begin, let's address
a common misconception, a bit of house cleaning, if you will.
Some folks have thrown around words like zombie or undead
when referring to our, well, our subjects here in Joyce Film,
Here at Blind Corp, we find such language unhelpful and
quite frank reductive.
Speaker 2: No no, no, no, no, no, no no.
Speaker 1: We don't call them zombies. Instead, we refer to them
as audience members. After all, they are merely expectators in
our grand performance, elevated and transformed through their participation.
Speaker 3: In the Hawk Initiative.
Speaker 1: This is not some b horror movie. They are the
silent witnesses, the faithful audience watching the play unfold. Now,
let's get into the nitty gritty, shall we. The Hawk
virus operates on a marvelous, intricate cellular level. What we're
witnessing here is a breakthrough in genetic augmentation. Through careful
manipulation of the mutagenic viral sequences, our team has achieved
an accelevated biological adaptation that allows the audience, these individuals
to let's say, assent to a higher state of being.
This audience transformation is not random now, it's meticulously engineered process.
By introducing micro variations of the virus into Joyceville's water supply,
this pursed through carefully calibated doses, we've managed to cultivate
this selection select population. These audience members exhibit what might
call erratic behavior. We see it as an early sign
of the glorious ascension driven by Blind Corps commitment to evolution.
For three years now, Blind Corp has monitored the Hawk
initiative through periodic exposure experiments, adapting the virus strains to
optimizing outcomes. Our largest and most successful test was, of course,
the Fall Festival.
Speaker 3: The release was.
Speaker 1: A triumph for both science and these spectators. It was
quite a spectacle.
Speaker 3: With a precise.
Speaker 1: Aerosolized strand of the virus integrated into the rainfall. This
allowed us to observe mass adaptation in real time. Sure,
we've had unfortunate cases well, cite impairment, but let's face it,
as the price of science, sacrifices are necessary for those
wondering about the super awesome diner program, it is exactly
what it sounds like. It's simply reliable dining option for
a choice. Bill's resident, bringing back the nostalgia of the
nineteen fifty silver diner aesthetic with some of those best
pancakes and burgers this side of the country line now
nothing nothing the fairy is there, of course, is just
a place to grab breakfast whenever you want it. But frankly,
there was no decent place to get a meal after
three pm, and Joys Bill and then needed to change.
But I will say purely by coincidence, mind you, these
diners' locations are placed in a rather interesting configuration around town.
Somehow joked that if you look at Joyce Bill from
a certain perspective, say from a satellite image or something
of that sort, it could resemble a pentagram. Isn't that funny?
But purely coincidential of course, the quirky alignment of good
food and good fortune. And as for certain defensive measurements,
well Blind Corp. Takes its responsibility to Joyspil very seriously.
These diner locations position around the edge of town also
allows us to conveniently radius the remote detonation of protective
measurements should we ever need to contain an outbreak. Devices
that go boom are simply a part of putent planning.
So congratulations to all our team members are scientists of course,
our audience for their commitment to Blind Corps Dream the
Hawk virus has shown us what possible, what the humanity
can achieve through shared sacrifice, dedication, and willingness to assend
beyond ordinary existence. We've done incredible work here in joy
Spill and while some may not participate or appreciate the
finer details, we at Blind Corp are thrilled to continue
our research and there's much more on the horizon. And
we're so excited to have you, our audience, right here
with us. What's going on with that? An alarm?
Speaker 4: Welcome to excuse us. The podcast appeals back the layers
of a small town life, uncovering the hidden horrors lurking
just beneath the surface of joy Spell, North Carolina, by
the tale of a queen little Diner to the chilling
corporate secrets of Blind corn. This is in your ordinary
postpacolleptive survival story. No, this is something much darker, much weirder,
much funnier, perhaps all from the perspective of the only survivor.
You'll dive into a quirky, fragmented recollection of chaos and
growing dread that led to joy Spell's downfall. Oh and
a little bit of warning before we get started. Excuse
us contains mature content intended for a mature audience. Strong language,
and let's just say a rather twisted sense of humor
is intended. Litter indiscretion is definitely advised.
Speaker 5: The setting is dimly lit, the soft hum of old
fluorescent lights filling the silence. Thomas and Doris are seated
in an abandoned office in the underground bunker they've been
occupying for months. Papers, maps, and crime scene photos of
Joyceville lay scattered around the table. A dusty innercom speaker
crackles to life, signaling an incoming communication from Roger, their superior,
stationed somewhere far above ground. The weight of their mission
six months undercover investigating Blind Corp. Has taken its toll.
Doris fidgets with her pen, her gaze fixed on Thomas
as if she's been seeing him in a new light
since their last briefing. The tension between them simmers, unspoken
but palpable.
Speaker 2: More were you watching, Ugh, don't worry about it. I
got my eye on you, Thomas.
Speaker 3: So what you're telling me is, after six months on
the ground, you are telling me you have gotten nothing tangible. Still,
no concrete evidence that Blind Corps involved in any of us,
No connections, no leads.
Speaker 6: We got We've got more than rumors. Just now, Roger,
is this whole town's been almost wiped out, and we
were not just talking about empty streets here. There's something
else out there. Zombies, Roger or audience members, however a
fuck you want to call them. It's not some Urvin
legend or all that blow tabloid headline. They are fucking real.
They're fast, they're violent, and they're overrun. Joyce Bill and
Blind Corps to blame for it. I know it.
Speaker 3: Zombies, Thomas, Really the zombies. Okay, audience member, you'd have
been drinking that diner coffee a little too strong, or
maybe it's just that cabing fever from playing hiding seek
in a dead end town for half a year.
Speaker 2: We're not crazy, Roger, we have witness survivors, what's left
of them. Anyway, you can't ignore this. It's real and
it's happening. Joey's feel nearly gone.
Speaker 6: But the bomb, let's talk about that. Let's talk about
the bomb. Okay, the one we found, the one missed
t and all the people somehow managed to diffuse before
leveled the rest of the town. So she didn't have
any training. There's no way she did it without any help.
Speaker 3: Mist Right, the diner lady who's supposed to be at
the center of this entire circus. Are you suggesting Thomas
that she's working or blind quarter up as undercolor hops
or what she's suddenly a bomb expert on the side,
Give me a break.
Speaker 5: Watching Thomas carefully now, her voice softer, inquisitive.
Speaker 2: We're not suggestion she's working for anyone. We were saying
that something bigger is at play, or ms d's actions
don't add up. She's smarter than she lets on, and
her diner staff, none of them are exactly what they seem.
Speaker 6: This isn't about Misty alone, Roger. There is more. There's
patterns here. Blind Corps been pulling strings from the beginning,
making this whole town into some kind of testing ground,
and for what WEAPONI used to viruses bio experiments. You
think I'm pulling us out of my fucking ass. I've
seen what's left of those people out there. What they become,
that's rich, they become Bleinkov got em Bolso what.
Speaker 3: You are saying, Thomas, what you two are saying is
after half a year, you are now running with zombie
theories and diner waitresses with secret bomb diffusing skills, all
while implicating one of the most powerful corporations in the
country of the crime. This is sounding more and more
like a conspiracy theory. Seriously, you're supposed to be agents,
act like it.
Speaker 2: We're we're doing our job, Roger, but you see more
interested in undermining us than listening. What exactly are you
trying to get here? You don't believe us or you
don't want to which one is it?
Speaker 5: A flicker of doubt crosses her face as she says it,
and she glances at Thomas, who catches the shift in
her tone.
Speaker 6: Listen, Roger, this isn't just some wild goose chase. These
aren'tes theories. We're city on a brink of something massive.
We're acting like it's nothing but paranoia? Are you paying
attention to the body count Joy's bill? I've been trapped
down here, so I don't know what it looks like.
But as mass's appearances, do you think people just up
and walked away from their lives because they were what bored?
Speaker 3: I'm paying attention. I'm paying attention to the fact that
you hadn't presented me with any solid proof. You think
you've uncover some grand conspiracy? What hawked us? Zombies? Audiences,
all of this nonsense, But I'm hearing as wild a
speculations zombies? How does that come out of your mouth
with a serious space? Mss D is some kind of
hero now here? There's something real, something tangible. Bring it
to me. Otherwise this conversation is over.
Speaker 2: Maybe we haven't found proof yet, but we are close.
You could, maybe you could help understand why you're so
eager to shut this down. Huh it make us understand, Roger?
You used to be on our side. What changed exactly?
Speaker 5: Roger goes silent over the intercom for a moment, just
long enough for the tension to build. Doris keeps her
eyes on Thomas, watching his reaction, gauging his response, A
subtle shift in her demeanor suggests she's starting to suspect
something else is going on.
Speaker 3: My job, My job is to make sure you two
fucking idiots, don't go chasing shadows and wasting agency resources
when every half baked idea that crosses your goddamn fucking mind.
That is what changed.
Speaker 6: We've been underground for six months. You think I'm out
here chasing shadows, uh, risking my life for this mission?
Speaker 1: Have you?
Speaker 2: Or you're chasing something else, Thomas, something else only you
know about.
Speaker 5: Thomas stiffens, his shoulders, going rigid. For a split second,
something flickers across his face, a glint of guilt or
something darker, something twisted and buried deep. He shoots her
a sharp, almost desperate look, eyes narrowing as if he's
trying to read her thoughts. But she doesn't back down.
Her gaze is steady, unyielding, But her voice there's a
tremor in it now, a faint crack as her suspicion
claws its way to the surface, breaking the veneer of
control she's fought so hard to keep.
Speaker 3: Get me something concrete, where this mission is over. Don't
come back with more. Zombie tales, one fact, real fucking fact, tangible, agreeable, understood.
Speaker 5: The silence stretches on, thick and stifling, filling the room
like smoke. After the intercom cut off, Thomas's jaw tightens,
his teeth, grinding a vein, pulsing at his temple, as
if he's wrestling with words that refuse to come out.
He looks away, his eyes fixed on a point just
past her shoulder, his face unreadable yet tense with something unsaid,
something raw. Doris studies him, every detail, every flicker in
his expression, her eyes narrow, her lips pressed tight as
her mind churns, piecing together fragments of suspicion and half truths.
She's been handed something here, a key to a door
she didn't know she'd been circling. Her heart pounds, each beat,
echoing louder in the quiet, yet her face remains composed,
concealing the storm brewing just beneath the surface.
Speaker 2: What were you watching? And why? H okay, Thomas, you
think Roger's now seeing a bigger picture here?
Speaker 5: Huh?
Speaker 6: Don't you be deliberately blind?
Speaker 2: Or maybe he knows more than we do, or maybe
or just maybe it's not him at all, Thomas looks
at her, the weight of her words sinking in.
Speaker 5: She's onto him, or at least she's starting to be,
but she's still holding her cards close, watching him like
a hawk, waiting for him to slip, and she knows
he just might. Look at you, got you old confidence
trying in around in mice came please?
Speaker 4: Yeah?
Speaker 5: Yeah, yeah, You're going to go in there and tell
them all how I single handedly apply for this ridiculous
diner franchise with zero experience and all all of this ass.
Speaker 4: A.
Speaker 5: You're going to actually manage to convince him. I know
what I'm doing. I mean, kudos to you, sis, Oh god,
I mean, who knew you had it in you?
Speaker 7: I think you know what you're talking to, do you?
Speaker 5: Man?
Speaker 7: I know how to talk like you. I practically wrote
the book charm.
Speaker 5: Yeah whatever, this is not my.
Speaker 7: First rodeo pretending to be someone else. Let you know.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, that's right. I got a little
bit of mischief in me.
Speaker 5: Yeah right, yeah, don't forget when it comes to charm.
You still playing catch up. Remember I was the Queen
of Charm when you were still sneaking jellybeans under mom's rug.
But hey, It's all part of why you're my little sister,
my little little sister. And let's be real here, if
anyone's good at talking circles around people, it's a you.
It's you.
Speaker 7: Oh whatever, whatever you're just saying, becaus I managed to
finish the whole jar, the whole freaking jar mayonnaise when
we were kids. Yeah, that was an achievement.
Speaker 5: Oh yeah, you mean the time that you projectile vomited
all over Grandma's best tablecloth. Wouldn't you call that growth
the Linda Blair Special.
Speaker 7: That was a moment of true dedication.
Speaker 5: Because you never forgave you for that. By the way,
I found it a couple of years ago. Man, this
smells still there.
Speaker 7: Pitch could never let it go. Kuli.
Speaker 5: They had a hidden away in the attic. It's crazy.
Speaker 7: You're lucky. I'm willing to go all out for you,
even if it means reliving my glory days as a
human firehouse.
Speaker 5: Well, yeah, dedication kind of runs into a family that
had plenty of it. Remember, it didn't give up on
me when I well, let's just say, even when I
royally fucked things up. Let's just say, you know, for
sake of argument.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I remember those us. A few weeks he ran
off some self righteous fool who tried to show up
at the hospital room with pamphlets or something called guidance,
barking down, my little lin isn't here, so you can
cast your Jesus coupon somewhere else, Padre. Yeah, we're not
even Jesus freaks. They just they just kept coming back,
and they they they never stopped asking. He never stopped asking,
whereas my little lin. But he he never stopped defending
you either. Didn't let a single soul tell them all
the wise, No matter what they heard, his little Lind
was perfect.
Speaker 5: I couldn't be there, I couldn't here, but you were.
You were there, keeping the wolves at bay, the family together.
Thanks Susan for this man.
Speaker 7: Okay, everything, bitch, don't get sappy for me now ah,
you gonna run ups care. You know I'm here right
for You're right right this. Do you know what this
whole thing is about?
Speaker 4: Right?
Speaker 7: It's pancakes for live, bitch, you hear me, Pancakes for life.
Speaker 5: Pancakes for life. Don't make me car now as I
owe you another one.
Speaker 7: Huh, And don't you forget it. I'm still a younger
sister though, So I'll guess I have to put in
a lot of work to, you know, to look as
as seasoned as you.
Speaker 5: Oh, shut up, bitch, Please this tough gig being the
notorious Catherine lynd D. Okay mm mmmm, I got swagger
for days, bitch, bitch please. I may even pave the way,
but that's the only because someone had to survive the disasters.
You didn't have to, you know what I mean? You
know what I am saying.
Speaker 7: Hey, I don't want to walk there and channel the
notorious CLD. You gotta be prepared, you know.
Speaker 5: Yeah, well.
Speaker 7: Yeah, all right, wish me luck and they'll go bailing
on me, all right, I wouldn't dream of it. Better
be here when I get back.
Speaker 5: You got this. This episode is made possible by listeners
like you. Visit our website I'd Life designed Forward slash
Excuse Us.
Speaker 8: For support or additional information, please visit our website or
Patreon page at patreon dot com. Forward Slash Rod.
Speaker 5: Pull Art Tonight's production of Excuse Us, a mystery drama
with delightful undertones of humor and Eldricht horror.
Speaker 8: What's produced by Rebecca Lakepool and Rodrigo Pool. Written and
directed and performed by Rodrigo Pool in association with R
and R Side Audio Theater.
Speaker 5: Music and sound effects by Epidemic Sound some other sound
effects who are recorded live on set voice modulation by
eleven Laps. If you're enjoying this production, please make sure
to review or subscribe to our show wherever you listen
to your podcast.
Speaker 8: Check out our Patreon page for bonus content.
Speaker 5: Until next time, this is.
Speaker 8: Rodrigo Pool saying thank you very much for listening
Speaker 5: Pancakes for Life